


Norok Kodaav-Tuz

by TinderWulf



Category: Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim
Genre: Angst with a Happy Ending, Arranged Marriage, F/M, Mating Cycles/In Heat, Shapeshifting, Were-Creatures, eventual poly - Freeform, shadowmere - Freeform
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-04-13
Updated: 2020-05-02
Packaged: 2021-03-01 21:09:10
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 14
Words: 20,619
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23633626
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/TinderWulf/pseuds/TinderWulf
Summary: Parents turned to traitors, Valera Bear-Blade pledges herself to the Stormcloaks. Never did she think that giving her oath to Ulfiric would mean an arranged marriage, but here she is, married to Galmar Stone-Fist.Never did she think her life would take so many turns after her marriage.I am notoriously horrible at summaries.
Relationships: Female Dovahkiin | Dragonborn/Ulfric Stormcloak, Galmar Stone-Fist/Ulfric Stormcloak/Female Dovahkiin | Dragonborn
Comments: 2
Kudos: 38





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> After snooping through some old fics I've had on my computer for ages, I came across this one. I had no idea there was a finished fic buried in 30 unfinished. It's not beta read. I wrote the more angsty parts during a rough patch with depression. Sorry for any mistakes. 
> 
> I own nothing, except my OCs.

****

**NOROK KODAAV-TUZ**  
  
**  
Fiercest Bear-Blade**

* * *

Swallowing the rising ache in her throat, Valera removed the band on her finger and left it on Galmar’s nightstand. The arguing downstairs continued as if her heart wasn’t shattering. Galmar didn’t know she was in. Calder had gone out for the evening on her coin. Valera had planned to sit and converse with Galmar about their unusual marriage. And tell him the truth.

Before she could make her presence known, Jarl Ulfric and Galmar had entered Hjerim already in a heated battle of words. Most of which were about her. The Dragonborn. Not Valera or Ice-Veins, but Dragonborn. As if all the blood she’d shed on Galmar’s orders had been nothing.

After securing her weapons and knapsack, she looked around to make sure there was nothing of importance she was leaving behind as she tried to ignore the distasteful words leaving her husband’s mouth. 

He’d married her because Ulfric had asked it of him. 

It had been tense months of living together. Galmar wouldn’t so much as acknowledge her existence. They had fought together. _Bled_ together. They had been friends. At least she had thought they had been. But this mess was her own making. She could have lied to Ulfric but she had sworn fealty to him. A vow she took seriously. 

With a sigh she gave her band one last look. She had had their bands made from dragon bone and inscribed Galmar’s knowing he couldn’t read it. If he’d even noticed. 

Pushing the thoughts away, she took a steadying breathe.

It was time to move on if only to let Galmar return to some sense of normalcy. Even if it broke her to walk away from him.

The conversation halted as she descended the stairs, Galmar’s whispered curse feeling more of a shout she could feel in her bones. 

“Ice-Veins? Is there an emergency?”

“Nay, my Jarl,” she answered softly, her voice as cold as the nickname he’d given her. “Calder knows how to reach me if you have need of my arrows,” she told him before walking out of Hjerim. Muffled arguing erupted behind her but she couldn’t bring herself to listen.

Shadowmere waited patiently for her in the stables, his black mane matching her mood. The beautiful beast always sensed her thoughts, his head shaking back and forth in restrained aggravation the nearer she got.

“I know, my steed,” she whispered as she ran her hand along his mane. “But I cannot force a man to accept me.”

By the time she got him saddled and packed, she heard the rustle of leather and cloth hurriedly rushing down the path. Her heart clenched with hope before she squashed it. Galmar came because he was told to.

“Dragonborn,” he called as she mounted her horse calming the stallion when he snorted. “Come back to Hjerim. Let us talk as soldiers.”

“I’ve tried for three months to talk to you, Stone-Fist,” she told him evenly. It had been a year since she’d called him anything other than Galmar. It hurt her more than she expected it to. “You’re here because you were ordered.”

“What would you have me do?” he asked angrily.

“What I could not,” she answered solemnly. “Lie to Ulfric.” 

“What? What do you mean?” He rushed, confusion etched into his near covered brow.

With a click of her tongue, Shadowmere reared in excitement forcing Galmar to take a step back. She couldn’t stop the smile as the horses’ adrenaline filled her own veins, her own laughter strange to her ears. The ground rumbled as she spoke to her stallion, “Kos nahlaas, brii.” Galmar’s eyes widened. _Be alive, beauty._ “Nir, Shadowmere! Nir!” _Hunt!_

“Dragonborn!” Galmar’s voiced called as Shadowmere leapt into a gallop, his hooves beating the soft ground.

Once his yells became more like whispers the farther they rode, she turned her head to call a blizzard to cover her tracks. “ _Fo Krah Diin._ ” She knew his loyalty to Ulfric would force him to come after her if the night were clear. But he would not leave Ulfric for long and with the blizzard her tracks would be gone with the visibility. He’d turn back.

She’d mourn later. For now, Shadowmere drove them through the night to hunt whatever scent he’d caught. She couldn’t deny the anticipation of spilling blood.


	2. Chapter 2

Palace of the Kings was quiet but Galmar couldn’t appreciate it for once. What had his _wife_ meant when she said she couldn’t lie to their Jarl?

When Ulfric had invited him for mead in his chamber all those months ago, Galmar had just though it another eve of brotherly bonding. How wrong he’d been. 

* * *

_”I have a request of you, old friend, and it is not one I make easily,” Ulfric said quietly._

_“I’ve never denied you a request before, shield-brother,” Galmar answered._

_“Aye, but it is political and personal.”_

_Galmar swallowed after a pause before wiping the bead from his mouth. “Then speak plainly.”_

_“I wish you to marry Ice-Veins.”_

__Marry?_ “Do you worry she will flee?”_

_“Nay,” Ulfric said with a sigh. “She is loyal, my left-hand.” Galmar his right hand though the words never needed spoken aloud for Galmar to know. “As I said, it is political.”_

_“And very personal,” Galmar replied. He was no stranger to arranged marriages but he’d never been on the receiving end. Until now. “What are the Dragonborn’s thoughts on the matter?”_

_“She has already agreed,” Ulfric told him with a tight smile. “As I said, she is loyal to Skyrim and more Nord than I’ve ever seen.”_

_“You desire her yourself, why not make her your wife?” Galmar asked roughly. _Why force it, her, on me?__

_“I will be forced to wed Elisif,” Ulfric stated grimly, his hands rubbing his face. “Should she swear fealty to me when we take Solitude.”_

_“If she does not?”_

_“Then she will die by my left-hand and I will still be forced to wed a noble to bring peace.”_

_“The Dragonborn is noble,” Galmar stated, hoping to get himself out of this._

_“Aye, but her parents joined the Imperials and their names tarnished.”_

_So it was deeply political. Marrying Elisif would bring peace among the populace. Marrying the Dragonborn would likely bring more unrest simply because of her parents choices. He did not envy Ulfric. Galmar didn’t bother trying to find another path where there was none. If the Dragonborn already had agreed, there was little choice in the matter. “Aye, I’ll do as you ask, brother,” he answered finally. _But my name is all she will get from me.__

* * *

Galmar shook the conversation from his mind as he slowly made his way to Hjerim. He hadn’t returned since last night when he went chasing after her on Ulfric’s order. It would seem he had the power to hurt the Dragonborn. It was not a thought that sat comfortably with him, especially after what he was sure she overheard.

They had been friends before that night Ulfric made the request. He’d been proud to address her as Ice-Veins and glad to fight next to her. But now he was so angered he couldn’t even stand to hear her draw breath. 

Aye, she’d tried to speak with him many times once her housecarl had left. She’d tried over mead, their dinners, as they repair their armor and sharpen their weapons... But he had ignored every single whisper. Even when he could hear the defeat in her voice and feel her shuddering next to him in bed when she thought he sleep. Her quiet tears only made him angrier.

_”Do what I could not,” she answered, her face blank as her unwound midnight hair whipped with the wind. She had to have been preparing for bed when she heard the argument. “Lie to Ulfric.”_

Lie to him about catching up to her, that was obvious. But what had Ulfric asked her and she could not lie about? Had there been a double meaning in her words? His gut told him yes.

Galmar entered his new home to find it empty of life. Of course it would be. Calder was only a servant to the Thane of Windhelm. It mattered little. He’d eaten a meal at the Palace. The chill of the house did little to him as he climbed the creaking stairs to the room his _wife_ should already be, resting in their bed. But the space was empty as well. 

He stirred the coals in the fireplace before adding logs, silently thanking Calder for keeping this much done. It was enough light to remove his armor and hang it. The basin was empty of water but it mattered little. There was no woman to worry about insulting with the scent of sweat. 

With a tired sigh, he sat heavily on his side of the bed before reaching for the bottle of mead only to halt in his tracks. 

There sat gleaming in the fire light was the white band that should be on his wife’s nimble fingers. The fingers he’d witnessed slaughter many Imperial and call forth wolves to fight at their side as her arrows met their mark. It lay accusing him of failure. The guilt that hit him was surprising. He’d said some selfish and unkind words when he thought he and Ulfric were alone. 

The vision of her laughter filled his mind as her horse reared. He’d been worried the beast would throw her. But she’d just smiled in pure warrior’s joy as she spoke to her horse in dragon tongue, the ground quaking beneath him. It had been… aweing to witness. He’d seen her Shout numerous times, but he hadn’t known she could speak the tongue.

And her beast, Shadowmere, seemed to understand each word his master spoke. _Nir, Shadowmere! Nir!_ The horse had neighed in answer before leaping into a run. Galmar had tried to follow, but to no avail. The Dragonborn had blocked his path. Ulfric had been disappointed when Galmar returned alone.

With a tired sigh, Galmar turned away from the band and lay down. No amount of drinking would make him feel less guilty for his treatment of a friend. She had not asked anything of him, even on their wedding night. He had sworn to give her nothing and she had asked for nothing. But in doing so, he refused her friendship as well.

He rolled to her side of the bed and stared as the wood began to catch fire. The pillow smelled of her. The soft scent of vanilla beans she had a small obsession with and a hint of blade oil. There was a spicy scent mixed in, one he could not place. But he was sure it was due to her dragon blood. 

No matter how long he lay, sleep would not come. He rose to put another log on the fire, an open journal catching his attention. It was old and worn with a bear claw in each corner of the pages. It was not a cheap item. A family heirloom she’d left in a safe place.

He lifted and began to read:

>   
>  My dearest Valera,
> 
> I could not bear the thought of your mother fighting alone. To leave her side… I just cannot, my child. I know one day, as your grow, you will find a man who feels the same about you. Who will love your weakness as much as your strengths and will treat you with respect. The way I have loved your mother for near twenty five years. 
> 
> I do not like the thought of you returning to our family home to find it empty. To come home to a lifeless home is draining on the soul. Even the beast inside us suffers because of it.
> 
> I do love you. Your mother loves you. But she follows her brother into a war our family had already decided to not fall into unless called upon by Skyrim. She heard her call and I must follow her. To die without her would be worse than death itself. Worse than what the Thalmor could ever do to me.
> 
> I leave you my amulet of Talos. Wear it proudly though we have gone to the wrong side of the war. If Ulfric Stormcloak calls to you, you must answer, my daughter. His father, The Bear of Eastmarch, was one of our greatest friends and allies. The Bear-Blood’s have sat too long out of this war. But we mourned our loss so deeply, we could not bring ourselves to step out of the darkness.
> 
> We go to our deaths in the name of Talos by killing from within. We have ruined our family name, but you will bring it greatness once more. May the blades of the bear protect you as they have our ancestor’s. And may you find your place in this war-battered world.
> 
> Your loving father,  
>  Vladic Bear-Blade

Valera Bear-Blade. Valera sounded rather exotic, much like the woman herself. She was a true Nord, there was no doubt about that. Though her black hair and golden eyes had once made him wary. Most Nord’s were varying degree’s of blonde with blue or green eyes, like himself and Ulfric. But there were a few rare dark headed like the Dragonborn. No, _Valera._

Valera Stone-Fist. _His_ wife. A wife whose blood ran deeply in Skyrim’s history. Whose family swore fealty to Ulfric’s late father and had gone to their deaths in the name of the Stormcloak clan.

And Galmar had left Valera’s back unprotected because of personal pride. After everything she’d already lost for this war.


	3. Chapter 3

It had been a week since she’d left Windhelm. Many had died as she passed through, though she knew it was done purposely. She’d made sure there was no trail anyone would be able to follow, and she didn’t stay in settlements longer than necessary to rest and restock supplies. But she had ravaged any all Imperials Shadowmere hunted. Yet it did nothing to soothe her rage.

Riften was exactly as she’d left it.

Gloomy and wet. Always.

Her first stop had been the Cistern, naturally. She’d avoided her duties as Guildmaster the last months while trying to mend the friendship she once had with the General, but everything was well in hand. There was the normal stack of papers waiting for her, jobs they weren’t sure they should take. Grabbing the stack, she left a bear paw amulet in its place so they’d know it was her before she slipped out and made her way through alleys.

What she saw between a couple barrels nearly stopped her heart.

A shivering child in rags.

“Young one, what are you doing out here in the cold?”

“Better to freeze to death than be beat,” he whispered through chattering teeth. 

The old wench that ran the orphanage. Molag’s beard she despised that horrible woman. “Come,” she told the boy gently. “I will give you a bed if you work for it on the morrow.”

Valera used magic to surround the near naked boy in warmth as they made their way to Honeyside. All the titles she held were good for something at least. There was always a warm bed waiting her no matter where her feet took her.

“Talos bless you, Iona,” Valera praised as they entered a warm home. 

“My Thane,” Iona replied with a smile and a bow. “I prepared for your return as soon as the messenger arrived. Who do you have here?”

Valera lifted a brow at the still shivering boy when he turned his dirty face towards her. “I don’t have a name, miss,” he whispered.

That was not unheard of in Riften, sadly. The old wench that ran the orphanage preferred to call them all brats. “Then you shall be known as Asuric, after my grandfather. Asuric Stone-Fist.”

“I will draw him a bath, my Thane,” Iona told her with the smallest hint of amusement. 

They would find out soon enough if his lineage was Nord. It wouldn’t matter if he was or not, Valera would still take him in. Her family never let a child go homeless or hungry. Looking at him closely she noticed his skin was nearly as pale as Galmar’s hair. With an internal smile, she couldn’t help but be somewhat amused at the thought of Galmar’s reaction when he learned of her new child. _His_ new child. It mattered little, she supposed. 

“Take your time washing, child, and scrub well,” she ordered gently. “I’d like to see the face of my son before we fill your belly,” she told him softly.

“Aye,” he wet his dry lips. “Mum,” he near-whispered. She gave his hair a ruffle as she smiled down at him. 

“A new life for you, Asuric, let’s start it off right,” Iona said as she returned to collect the boy.

Valera smiled as she made her way to her bedchamber. She would sit down and write Galmar a note for Iona to deliver with her son. But first she needed to catch up on guild work. There was plenty of reports to get through.

* * *

“Rolaf?” Galmar questioned as soon as the man was close enough to the throne.

“We were ambushed not two days ago,” Rolaf answered before being asked directly.

Ulfric sighed, the slumping of his shoulders grabbing Galmar’s attention before returning it to Rolaf. “How many did we lose?”

Rolaf smiled, “None.”

“None?” Ulfric repeated. “Explain.”

“We’d made camp, my Jarl,” Rolaf started. “We’d scouted and found nothing to be concerning. But as the darkest of the night set in, Imperials leapt from the shadows.”

“How did none of our men die?”

“The ground began to quake, General, a black steed with glowing red eyes ran through camp. His mistress on his back as she spoke, her arrows flying through the night.”

“Ice-Veins,” Ulfric said with a satisfied smile.

“The dead rose from the ground as our men awakened. Wolves tore through our camp at their mistresses Shout…” Galmar could do nothing but listen. He’d never got to see the more frightening side of the Dragonborn that he’d heard whispers of. Merely the warrior side and he knew how incredible that was to see. “It was over before our men even got to their feet.”

“Did Ice-Veins say anything?” Galmar asked. He’d stopped calling her Ice-Veins when he was forced to wed her, the name felt foreign on his tongue.

“Aye, told me to report to ye immediately,” Rolaf answered. “Then said something I didn’t understand: Nir, Shadowmere. Nir.”

Ulfric laughed, the deep chuckle confusing both Rolaf and Galmar. “Of course she did,” he said finally. “She trained her horse in the dragon tongue, I should not be surprised.”

“What does it mean, my Jarl?” Rolaf asked.

“Hunt, Shadowmere. Hunt.” Ulfric answered. “I wager there will be several more reports coming in over the next few days. Rolaf, well met. Eat, rest, and await your orders.”

“Yes, Jarl Ulfric.”

Galmar followed the jarl into the war room. “Your wife is on a war path, Galmar,” Ulfric commented with an amused twinkle in his eyes. Before Galmar could speak, the sound of the doors closing and rushed, metal-clanking footsteps came forth. “And so it begins, my friend.”

“General!” a muddied soldier said as soon as he’d bowed to the jarl. “Three Imperial camps have been…” the wide-eyed soldier licked his lips nervously. “Slaughtered.”

“Three you say?” Ulfric asked, amusement lacing his tone.

“One was burned to the ground as if done so by a dragon, another with arrows and magic, and the last…” the man paled. “The last shows evidence of a wolf attack.”

“Ice-Veins has been busy,” Jarl Ulfric commented as he began to mark his map corresponding with the locations on the parchment the soldier delivered. Galmar watched trying to see if they led in a specific direction. But they didn’t. She was far too smart for that. It was likely she knew he’d follow her.

His shoulders weighed heavy in guilt. It was he who pushed her into a rage. And it was likely he who would be punished when she died because of it. 

“My Jarl?” Jorleif interrupted. “I beg your pardon for interrupting, but there is a woman here claiming to be the housecarl of the Thane of Riften. She comes to speak with Galmar Stone-Fist for her mistress.”

Galmar’s heart constricted. Had he already killed her? He didn’t wait to be dismissed, he pushed past Jorleif to see an armored nord woman speaking to a young boy as he ate his fill of sweet rolls. “The Dragonborn is a Thane in Riften and Windhelm?” The litte boy asked wide-eyed. “Wow!”

“And Whiterun, Solitude, Falkreath,” the woman replied. “Everywhere she goes she can’t help lending a hand in the name of Talos.”

“I want to be like her,” the boy said dreamily.

“Aye, me too.”

“I’m Galmar Stone-Fist,” he said roughly, causing the boy to flinch in fear. 

The woman stood. “I am Iona of Riften, the housecarl of the Dragonborn. I was ordered to make a delivery whilst she was in Riften, Sir.”

Riften, so quickly? “And?”

Galmar was confused when she waved at the boy. “Meet Asuric Stone-Fist, son of Valera Stone-Fist.”

 _Son?_ He heard Ulfric chuckle behind him. “It would seem Ice-Veins does not fit her anymore,” the jarl commented. What was he supposed to do with the child?

“Is my wife returning then?”

“I cannot say,” Iona told him as she held up a sealed parchment. “This was to be delivered as well.”

Ulfric, ever the humble host stepped forward, “Please, Iona, eat and rest before making your way back to your Thane’s holdings.”

“I thank you, Jarl Ulfric,” she replied with a bow before turning to the child. “Be good for your pa,” she whispered before giving the child’s hair a ruffle. “My Thane will check in regularly to make sure you’re settled.”

By the time Galmar made it home, it was late. To his surprise Calder was in the residence. 

“Ah! You must be the son my Thane told me about!” The housecarl said with a welcoming smile. “Come, your new mother messaged ahead to have your room prepared.”

So she’d send Calder a message but not him? Remembering the parchment inside his armor, he made his way upstairs as it seemed to burn against him. Though he took his time, his heart was hammering inside of him, begging him to rush to read the missive.

Even the calming breaths did nothing to calm his racing heart as he finally sat down and broke the seal.

>   
> Stone-Fist,
> 
> I send a child I found freezing to death in Riften. He is not to be beaten or tossed away. Teach him what you will be it smithing or alchemy. He is named after my grandfather. The boy is Nordic and was orphaned. He is not to be treated as help and I’ll will bring the entirety of Windhelm to the ground around you if he is. He is now your son and an apprentice to all arts. 
> 
> Teach him well.  
> 

That was it? He read then read it again. Did she have no plans of returning at all? Deserting? No, no she wouldn’t do that. The Bear-Blade clan seemed to be Skyrim’s ally. Surely she would come back at some point. 

Wouldn’t she?

With a heavy sigh, he looked to the ring on his bedside table. It glinted angrily at him still. The anger had left him but it was replaced with guilt and sorrow. He missed his friend.


	4. Chapter 4

It had been a month since she’d rode off into a blizzard. Still, her laughter haunted him. Galmar had asked Calder to get a message to Valera. 

He’d wanted her to help find the Jagged Crown.

Instead, two weeks later, a mysterious man in Thieves Guild leathers appeared. “A gift from my Guildmaster, Jarl Ulfric.”

Galmar had been wary as he opened the package only to stare in shock. Valera was the Guildmaster too? “Your name?” That was why she was in Riften…

“Rune,” he answered.

“How does my wife fair, Rune?” He asked as he handed the package to Ulfric. 

The man smirked, his eyes sparkling beneath his hood. “My Guildmaster always fairs well, Galmar Stone-Fist.”

“Aye,” he replied. She does though it did not make him feel better in the least. “Eat and rest before you make your leave.” As an afterthought, “Is she still in Riften?”

“She always is, even when she is not,” the man told him.

Galmar couldn’t help but chuckle. “Aye,” he told him in understanding. She is anywhere she is in a person’s thoughts.

“I was also ordered by her second to see how her child is,” the quiet man stated. “We care for our lost children in Riften.”

Galmar nodded in the direction of the alchemy lab, “He is playing with potions today.”

“My Guildmaster will be pleased to hear that. I will take my leave,” he said with a bow before silently making his way out of the palace.

“Interesting titles your wife holds, old friend,” Ulfric teased before turning serious. “It would seem I owe you a drink. I can’t believe she found it.”

* * *

With Whiterun firmly in Stormcloak hands, she disappeared before she could see the unwanted glare of her husband. All this time later and it still hurt when his eyes passed over her as if she wasn’t there. With not many people knowing of her Harbinger title, disappearing had been easy as the troops celebrations turned to drinking.

She gave Vilkas’ shoulder a squeeze as she passed him on her way to the office. The man had kept things running smoothly, even if he did disagree with her on many things. She appreciated his bluntness regardless. And he appreciate her not taking everything he said personally. He was gruff. Less so when she cured herself because he had understood. Especially after she experienced the heat. Even half beast her heat had been nearly too much for Vilkas to aid her with. 

Vilkas was her second but during the hunt, he led with pride. With her blessing. 

She couldn’t fault his leadership in wolf form. He excelled.

“Harbinger,” Farkas greeted as she passed him on the stairs.

“Just Sister,” she told him with an affectionate pat to his arm. “I share my title with Vilkas gladly.”

“A team usually works better,” he told her with a big smile. 

“That they do, brother,” she answered. “More so since I’m part dragon and have other responsibilities to Skyrim.”

She didn’t know how long she sat with her nose buried in parchment. Mead and food had been brought. Vilkas stopped in to pick up jobs she’d approved while he enjoyed the rare time off from decisions. She’d shed her bloody armor in favor of a clean tunic and leggings. Tilma had even come and brushed her long hair before braiding it to keep it out of the way.

The sound of new recuits being forced from their beds told her it was likely dawn. Vilkas had far too much fun with the new ones. Yet, she continued to work. She was exhausted, that was true, but her mind demanded work.

Nearing the end of the paperwork, she felt she could just push through.

A plate of steaming food was set in an empty place on her desk. “Thank you, Tilma,” she said distractedly but with affection for the elderly woman. 

“You’re welcome, though I am not Tilma,” a gruff voice replied making her tense.

“Stone-Fist,” she greeted evenly, not bothering to look up.

“You disappeared.”

“I have things to tend to,” she answered. 

The man sighed before taking a seat, the chair creaking under his muscular weight. “Calder brought Asuric, Valera. I thought you might like to see him,” he told her softly.

Her body tensed. He’d only ever addressed her as nicknames, Dragonborn being the dominate name since their marriage and it was usually said in distaste. Never her given name. Her head jerked up when she heard a soft voice. “Mum?”

She couldn’t stop the smile at the sight of the boy waiting timidly by the open door. “Asuric Stone-Fist,” she greeted before turning in her seat as he ran to her. Her laughter was soft as his tiny arms wrapped around her neck. “Look at you!” She cooed. “Every bit the Nord I thought you were under all that dirt.”

“Is it true you’re the Harbinger of the Champions?” He asked her excitedly.

“Aye,” she replied. “That I share with my shield-brother Vilkas.”

“The scary one?”

“Aye, scary he looks, but soft is his heart,” she whispered secretively. “Just don’t tell a soul.” She could feel Galmar watching her. Likely judging her but she didn’t care. “Here comes Farkas, his twin. He is even sweeter.”

“That I am,” Farkas replied with a big smile.

“Farkas, take Asuric out to train with a wooden sword if he’s had his fill of morning meal.”

“Really, Mum?” He asked excitedly making Galmar chuckle.

“Yes!”

She sighed as she watched him bounce down the hall with an equally excited Farkas. She was so close to being done with her paperwork. “I told him he couldn’t train until I had his mother’s permission,” Galmar told her. “I did not want to endure your wrath.”

She nodded, a small smile on her lips as she worked through papers, one catching her eyes. “Aela!” She called down the hall as she read over the missive.

“Sister,” the soft spoken reply came. Valera knew she was anything but.

“Got one for you that needs to be handled immediately if you’re up for some coin.”

“Good, I was starting to fidget.”

“There’s a pack of diseased dogs that need to be put down but the last person that tried had his hand bitten and died three days later,” Valera informed her. 

“So they call on the Companion’s?” Galmar asked, his brow raised in surprise.

“Yes,” Aela answered for here. “I’ll take it sister and be back before dinner is over.”

Galmar was quiet as she finished going through her work while picking at her food. She knew she needed to rest but she was wound too tight. 

“This the last?” Vilkas asked quietly as he stepped in the room to scoop up more parchment.

“Aye,” she answered before yawning. “I’ll leave calculating coin to you when it comes in. I’ll be heading back to Windhelm soon.”

“How long do we have you?”

“A day, two at most,” she answered. “But you know the routine.”

“Let Lydia know if you are needed…” he smirked. “I would be more upset with you for leaving if you didn’t always do your share of the work anytime you’re near us.”

“You are family, I would not abandon even you, grumpy wolf,” she teased.

“Speaking of family, my twin is out there getting bludgeoned by your son,” Vilkas told her before quietly leaving the room.

She sighed, a smile on her lips. “A true Nord indeed.”

“Aye,” Galmar agreed. She’d almost forgotten he was there. Perhaps she was more tired than she thought. “Come, Valera, let us go see our son beat up a grown man.”

She ignored the flutter of her heart at her name tumbling from his mouth and from the heat of his hand splayed across her back.

* * *

Dinner at Jorrvaskr was always rowdy. With most of the Companions out working, all that was left was Vilka, Farkas, and a new member of the circle. She hadn’t learned his name just yet as he’d been out when she’d returned. The young man had yet to experience his first hunt, but the full moon was coming. It wouldn’t be long. 

Tilma had tucked Asuric into a bedroll in Valera’s chamber leaving the adults to talk freely without fear of a child overhearing things a child should not hear. Even though the boy had likely heard it all while living in Riften.

One moment there was laughter and the clanking of tankards, then next the members of the circle, including herself heard the call as the rest went talking until they realized the sudden decrease in volume.

“Valera?” Galmar whispered worriedly.

“Aela,” Farkas said.

“Go, hunt, and answer her call. I will follow with your armor,” she ordered in a voice she usually reserved for Stormcloak troops. What she wouldn’t give for the beastblood to be in her veins right in this moment.

“No, Trian, not yet,” Vilkas said roughly as the twins stripped quickly to their leggings.

“Valera?” Galmar repeated.

She turned her head sharply to him. “Do not move, do not draw your weapon, and keep your mouth shut.” He looked ready to argue until the sounds of crunching bones drew his wide-eyed stare.

Valera took in her brothers once they completed the transformation. “Use the tunnel and the cover of night. Get to our sister.”

The twins were gone in a flash. 

A crash to the floor had her running to the whelp whining pathetically on the floor as his bones slowly shifted. He hadn’t been able to stop the change. She hadn’t either the first time. “Hush, whelp,” she told him gently. “Relax, let the change happen. It will hurt much less.” She put her bared wrist against his ear so he could hear the calm thumping of her blood over his own breathing. His eyes closed as he let his wolf take over.

Galmar stood at his place, his eyes wide and face pale as he watched. She could feel his eyes. It took everything she had to keep her heart steady so as not to look back.

“Do not interrupt the mothering,” she heard Vignar say quietly. “Unless you want to make your wife a widow.”

“Aye,” she whispered at the young man. “There you go, whelp. Red fur…that’s rare.” She watched as he fought the beast that desired the hunt. She used magic to calm him. “Aye, I know. But you must stay with me this hunt, whelp.” He whined but bowed his head.

“What do you need, Harbinger?” Vignar asked as she stood. 

“I need you to send a guard for Lydia. I would feel better leaving you both here to protect our people as they dream,” she told him. 

“Valera! What is happening?” Galmar roared causing the new whelp to growl and position himself in front of her.

“He’s my mate, whelp,” she whispered before approaching her husband. She grabbed the front of his leather armor and jerked him down to her level easily. “Listen to me: You will speak of this to no one. Not even our jarl.”

“This could be…”

“Do not even finish that sentence,” she growled low, threateningly. “This is my family. I am allowed secrets with my spouse. Secrets that _do not_ harm the Stormcloaks in any way.” Her stomach clenched when he set his jaw. “The Companions are neutral. If you cannot keep this secret, then you are no husband to me.”

Angry, she turned to the shaking werewolf. “Come, Shadowmere will already be waiting.”

As she left the doors she heard Vignar voice call loudly, no doubt Galmar trying to follow her. “As a firm supporter of the Companions, and Ulfric Stormcloak, I want to give you one bit of advice.”

“What?” Galmar answered roughly.

“Do as she says. To speak of this will dishonor her.”

They hadn’t made it to the tunnel when Galmar caught up with her. Neither said nothing as they entered and made their way through.


	5. Chapter 5

In all his years…

There had been rumors. There was always rumors of some kind of beast, but to actually witness it. To see it as truth. That was a lot to take in.

Talos preserve him! And Valera…

It was too much all at once. She whispered to the werewolf at her side, teaching as the lad learned the way of the _were_. He rode on her massive beast while she hitched a ride on a werewolf’s back. It was almost laughable. Only the seriousness of the situation kept him from losing his mind, he was sure.

“Return the howl, let them know we’re close,” she ordered. “Make haste!”

What Galmar saw as soon as they broke free of the trees disgusted him. Not the werewolves, nay, but the Imperials that had the woman, Aela, strapped down on a table, blood from fresh cuts soaking through her ruined armor. She’d been ambushed.

His attention jerked to the growling wolf that his wife was leaping from. “Whelp,” she called. “The battle is done. Wait, be patient,” she told him gently. The wolf bowed his head.

“Help!” A lone soldier screeched.

“Aye,” his wife’s cold voice returned. “I’ll help.” That was a voice he’d never heard before and it chilled him to his core, suddenly glad to be her ally. “But only if you answer my questions.”

-

“Yes! I’ll tell you anything you want to know.”

“Be aware they can smell lies,” she told him, the white of her teeth glinting in the firelight. “Why are you here?”

“Following orders to move to our camp since our last was destroyed!” He answered quickly.

“Why do you have a woman strapped down to the table?” She asked him in the same unbending tone.

The man began to shake. “They meant to get information.” His head dropped. “Before they used her.”

She may not have the beastblood anymore but she could still understand her brother’s unspoken words while they were in beast form. _They didn’t have time to rape her._

“Thank you for your honesty,” she told him.

“Am I free?”

“Aye,” she answered easily. “Release him,” she ordered as she ran her fingers over the whelp beasts head to keep him calm. “I suggest you run and warn your brethren that Skyrim doesn’t take kindly to having our women used.”

“Yes, miss!”

-

Galmar watched from on top of Shadowmere as the man ran. He couldn’t help the anger at Valera for letting the Imperial flee. That was until he watched as she crouched down to the red wolf and whispered to him. A chill ran up his spine when he howled, the other two wolves joining in before the red one took off.

The thought was quickly gone when he noticed one of the men return to their human shape, bare as the day they were born. And in front of his wife who didn’t seem to notice his nudity as she patted his cheek. Galmar slipped off of the horse and brought the bag of armor as he approached the naked man and handed it over.

“Why hasn’t the other changed back?” He asked his wife quietly as she tended to Aela before a horrible human scream reached his ears. She let the whelp hunt after all.

“Because we are pack leaders and he is ensuring that the whelp’s first hunt goes smoothly,” his wife answered.

“Do you always hunt humans?” No love lost for the Imperial but…

“Rarely, but you should understand that if it had been a Stormcloak doing this to her, he’d be dead too.” He didn’t like it, not one bit but seeing the sorry state Aela was in he could understand her anger. “They hunt only animals unless circumstances call for it.” _Like this one._ She left unvoiced.

Galmar watched as his wife forced a potion down Aela’s throat before using magic to heal the wounds littered across her body.

“Sister, you would heal faster if you changed,” he heard her whisper.

He had to close his eyes when the woman agreed for Valera began stripping her immediately. All he could do was hold the empty satchel out for his wife to drop the soiled armor in. “For Talos sake, Farkas, put your breeches on!” He heard his wife say.

“Oh!” The man replied. Galmar could only chuckle. “I was wondering why there was a chill!”

When he opened his eyes, a werebeast sat where Aela once laid. “Aela, go hunt but make it quick.” The beast whined. “You must, you lost too much blood,” his wife whispered as her hands cupped the wolf’s head. “Magic can’t replace that.”

This was another side of her that was odd to witness. Even sharing a tent, through battles, and planning, he’d never seen so much of her as he had in the last day. The real her, not the Ice Veins she had portrayed. Ulfric was right, the name did not fit her any longer.

All it did was make the guilt of his treatment weigh even heavier on him.

* * *

By the time they made it back, she was barely standing. She’d leave Vilkas to fill in Vignar once they returned. She heard Galmar behind her as he followed her to her bedchamber. There was no way she was making it back to Breezehome. Tilma had put Asuric in a bedroll on the floor. She side stepped him quietly before removing her boots and falling into her bed, her clothing smelling of wolf.

The soft rustle of leather told her Galmar was disrobing as well. She was sure he’d choose to sleep with his men. It was likely he was a tired as she after the events of the last few days. 

The bed barely shifted as he lay down next to her and pulled the blanket at the end of the bed over them. Her body stiffened when he spoke, his voice rumbling pleasantly in her ear. “How long since you slept?”

“Before the seize,” she answered sleepily. How long ago was that?

She felt his breath gently move her hair as he pulled the blanket up to her chest. Sleep already began to pull her in when she felt his lips against her temple before he buried his face in her hair and inhaled.

These were the dreams that plagued her nearly every night. But she welcomed them anyway.


	6. Chapter 6

There had been no time to talk to his wife. Ulfric had kept her busy since the incident at Whiterun. Had it not been for Vignar the Revered, now Jarl of Whiterun, Galmar wasn’t sure he could have come up with a plausible truth after seeing all he had that night.

“What do we call her now?” Ulfric mused from his throne as another promising report came in. 

“I want no say,” Galmar replied. “Especially if she hates it.”

Ulfric laughed heartily but Galmar could see the envy in his friends eyes. The jarl thought their marriage was typical after this long. How wrong he was.

The scent of vanilla had not been returned to his marriage bed. In fact, Valera hadn’t even made it six paces inside Hjerim before being called out again. Galmar briefly wondered if Ulfric was doing it on purpose, but he knew better. The missions she was sent on were a priority and it helped with moral.

It didn’t stop his longing to smell the scent of his wife though. Or the pride he felt at her trust in him, even after he treated her so poorly. He missed her. 

Still, his wife hardly spent any time alone with him. There was always something that demanded her attention when she was home. He’d go to bed alone and wake up alone knowing she chose to rest her head elsewhere because of what he’d put her through. The misery he felt was his own doing, he knew. He just wish he knew when he began to want her favor instead of her silence. 

Two months since taking Whiterun and the most he’d seen his wife was when they were traveling to Windhelm. It was disheartening, his own morale low when a messenger came to deliver a letter to Ulfric or Asuric. That was his own fault too.

He’d made a mess of all this. 

The band on his finger seemed to tighten with the more guilt he carried, as well as her ring hanging from his neck with his amulet of Talos. He missed her more than he ever expected to and the emptiness grew with each passing day she didn’t come home. There were no black Thieves Guild leathers entering, no silent footsteps or victorious smirks…

“You look tired, old friend,” Ulfric commented quietly. “She had to take care of Dragonborn work but she’ll return. She always does.”

That was the first he’d heard of Dragonborn work. But he didn’t let Ulfric know it. 

“I wish all were so loyal as you and her,” Ulfric said tiredly. “This war would be over that much quicker.”

If he wasn’t worried about breaking the fragile trust he’d gained with Valera, Galmar would tell him of the journal. But it was likely her parents died fighting. There was no need to add pain to her heart.

* * *

Another month passed but without word from his wife. The men couldn’t handle his fear as they battled him during training. No one had heard from her. Three months gone and he had no idea where to look for her even if he could leave Ulfric’s side.

Asuric missed his mother. He missed his wife.

His nerves were frayed as he stood next to the throne listening to meaningless chatter. His own worry was reflected in Ulfric but neither man dared to break the silence. Doing so could prove bad luck for their Dragonborn. And both were superstitious. 

The doors banged open as they always do but when he glanced in the direction, it wasn’t the black guild leathers he wished to see. His heart sank even more. The soldier walking in was stiff, their armor like ice as their feet clomped heavily on the floor. 

“Jarl Ulfric,” Jorleif said, interrupting Galmar’s dark thoughts. “The Dragonborn returns victorious.”

Ulfric stood quickly, Galmar’s head whipping back around to the soldier in ice as they removed their full helmet, a thick black braid tumbling out. 

“Valera,” he whispered as his feet carried him to her. “Praise Talos,” he said as his hands held her face and took in every detail. The dark circles under her eyes, sunken cheeks, and the new scar on her jaw. He could barely breath before confusion filled him as her eyes rolled back, her face ghostly white. “Get the healer!” He called as he easily caught her before she could fall to the floor.

“Galmar?” Ulfric questioned as he joined the general.

“Have the healer meet us at home,” he told him though he had no right to order a jarl.

“I will, old friend,” the jarl answered. “Go.” 

With Calder down in the basement all he could do was yell through the house as he quickly carried his wife to their bed. 

“What happened?” Calder asked roughly as he entered the room and began to help Galmar remove the unusual armor.

“I don’t know, she just returned.”

Calder hissed as a ragged wound came into view on her arm. It was mostly healed which meant she’d gotten into trouble on her way back from wherever she’d been. “It looks infected.” Calder bend down and smelled it. “Infected.”

They worked quietly as they inspected what they could of her body, leggings and worn tunic all that was left on her, before the healer arrived. 

“Arch Mage!” The healer whispered before his professional mask fell into place.

Of course she holds that title too. Galmar was beginning to think she made it a personal goal to hold as many titles as possible. Remembering the journal, he thought perhaps this was how she was bringing Bear-Blade back into greatness.

“Please bring warm water and a clean rag, then leave us so I can work,” the healer said.

Calder did as he was told but Galmar refused to leave the room. He wasn’t worried about the healer getting handsy, it was because he hadn’t seen his wife in a quarter of a year. 

“General,” the healer started.

“I’m not leaving,” he answered roughly.

“I got that, yes. However, I need her stripped to her underthings.”

It would be a first for him to see her in nothing but her chest binder and smalls. In the first three months they were married she always came to bed dressed in a loose tunic and leggings. There were scars all over her body as he cut the stiff, soiled material free. Some looked like arrows, some from swords, but there were some even he couldn’t identify easily. 

“If she’s a healer why is she covered in scars?”

“She wasn’t always a healer,” the man answered. “These scars were before her time at the college.”

She’d fought so much already. Her body was toned, as a warrior’s would be. She was beautiful but then she always had been. Exotic Nord’s were highly sought after by the Imperial’s. 

The healer’s hands hovered over his wife’s skin for hours until he’d meticulously gone over every last inch.

“I’m leaving vials behind with instructions. You will need to make her drink as soon as she awakens to help her recover more quickly.”

“And her body?”

“It’s been a long time since I’ve seen a case of exhaustion like this. My guess is whatever she was battling was not easy. Even Alduin didn’t tire her so. She had to use every last bit of her reserves to defeat whatever this was, if the rumor is true she was victorious.”

The healer let himself out as Galmar collapsed into the chair he’d moved next to the bed. His wife would be fine. With a sorrowful sigh, he rose from the chair before leaning over the bed and planting a soft kiss to his sleeping wife’s forehead. 

He had to return to Ulfric’s side, but Calder would care for his Thane like she was all he knew. And for once, he was grateful.


	7. Chapter 7

Valera groaned deep in her chest when the surface moved under her. 

“Valera?” Came a familiar whisper.

Safety. She tried to remember how she had gotten to Windhelm, but she wasn’t exactly sure. A whimper left her when she was lifted by her shoulders.

“Sorry, love,” he whispered as he held her still. “I need you to drink the potions the healer left.”

When a cold glass vial touched her lip, she opened her mouth. She was so thirsty. The liquid was cool, tasting minty as it was swallowed. _Magicka_. The next came and she drank. _Health potion_. 

“The last is just a drop of skooma to help with the pain,” he told her. She wasn’t a fan of skooma, but her entire body felt like it was raw. She held her tongue out, feeling the tantalizing spicy tingle that came with the drug. 

Her head fell forward making him hiss out an apology before he hugged her upper body to his. It was then she noticed the feel of skin against skin. Heat pooled into her belly as her husband’s scent surrounded her. _The heat is coming._ She’d forgotten her potion, but it was too late now.

“Calder?” her husband called out making her stiffen briefly before a new wave of pain rushed through her. She did her best to breathe through it as his hand rubbed up and down her back.

“General?”

“Please get Valera a bowl of your stew, but only the liquid unless it’s boiled down to mush. And water.”

“Pa?” A quiet voice interrupted her thoughts on identifying the different scents of her husband. “Is Mum okay?”

Valera clumsily held her hand out to her son making Galmar chuckle. “Aye, boy. Come hug your mother or we’ll likely be in trouble.”

She sighed happily when a tiny body moved and pressed against her back, his arms encircling as much of his mother and father as he could. 

“See?” Galmar told him gently. “She’ll heal faster now that you shared your love with her.”

“Really?”

“Aye, son. But she needs to eat and sleep. Go back to bed and see how your love has healed her in the morn.”

“Yes, Pa,” Asuric said happily, giving her another squeeze before she heard him bouncing off.

“You blessed me the day you took him in, Valera,” he told her. “Even if I did want to strangle you for leaving a child with an old man like me.”

She heard Calder set a bowl and cup down on the bedside table. Galmar said something but her eyes were on the ring hanging around his neck. _Her_ dragon bone band. How long had he been wearing it?

“Alright, love,” he whispered as he carefully adjusted pillows behind her. “Let’s get some food in you before I have to give you another vial.”

“Why so many?” She asked, her voice rough.

“Because you were depleted. Empty. Completely exhausted.”

“Shadowmere?” She asked, panic seizing her gut.

“He brought you home. The guards had him stabled,” Galmar told her before holding the spoon up to her mouth. 

It was a little embarrassing being fed by another person, but he was right about one thing. Her body was utterly exhausted, but with each passing minute she felt it relax a little more, the pain slowly ebbing away as the potions refilled her emptiness. She would likely be feeling rather well by morning. 

After she managed to get the bowl of mushed stew down, she drank greedily from the cup before clumsily wiping her mouth.

She sleepily watched her husband walk about the room snuffing candles until all that was left was the light from the fireplace before his stripped to his loin cloth. Once he’d entered the bed and pulled the furs over them both, he carefully pulled her body to his.

“Please don’t leave me in the dark anymore, Valera” he whispered against her temple. “I can’t bear it.”

“Aye,” she agreed. It had been a petty thing to do. But then, how was she to know he cared at all? Of course it was likely Asuric had been consumed with worry.

She grunted when Galmar reached over her. “Do I smell like a boar?” He asked, his voice sounded slightly worried.

“No, you smell like a man,” she answered. “That squished me.”

“Sorry, I forgot about the extra drop of skooma,” he told her.

“I don’t want it,” she answered. “Pain is minimal if only you would stop moving.”

He chuckle vibrated against the hand that was laying on his chest. “Sweetest dreams,” he whispered before pressing his lips to her brow.

“Sweetest dreams,” she repeated softly.

* * *

A low growl made his body tense. But he wasn’t in an army camp. He was in his marriage bed and that was most definitely his wife pressing her nose into his neck.

“Valera?” He asked carefully. She sounded almost beastly. But the moon wasn’t full. “What is it?”

“Heat,” she whispered roughly making him shudder when she nipped his neck.

“The beastblood?”

“Aye.”

“How can I help?”

“Mate me, Galmar,” she whispered against his ear. “Pour your seed inside me.” 

He knew she could sense his hesitation. He was twice her size and he’d been craving her for a long while. 

When she lifted her head, her eyes glittered in the firelight, much like Vilkas’ had. “You will not break me.”

“You’re still recovering,” he told her, pushing a strand of hair behind her ear while running his thumb over her warm cheek.

“If you do not, it will be unbearable for me,” she told him evenly. Her body glistened in sweat, her chest rising and falling quickly. “I need to be mated. _Now_.”

With her moving to straddle his hips, it was difficult to concentrate, but there was one thing, maybe two, he needed to know. “I will if you will answer my question,” he whispered as he stilled her hips over his straining cock. Her whimper made him twitch against her. At her nod, he asked what had been bugging him since he’d chased her away. “What could you not lie to Ulfric about?”

He saw the question surprised her and she looked away, her bottom lip pulled between her teeth as she debated. It was a look he’d seen her wear many times during planning their attacks. He steeled himself when her shoulders slumped. 

“He asked me if I would consider marrying him if Elisif had to be killed.” Her voice was barely a whisper as she started into the fire. “I told him I could not.”

“Why?”

“The many titles I hold and the people that rely on me, regardless of the shame my parents brought my family name.” Her eyes were wet as she turned to look back at him. “He knew I already cared for another and when he asked who, I could not lie.” Her brows pinched together. “I swore myself to him and Skyrim and the honor that me bound to him could not lie.”

He understood what she wasn’t saying. His heart felt as if it would burst from his chest as her eyes fell to the band he’d kept close to his heart. 

“Valera,” he said quietly. There was one last thing he needed to know. “What does my ring say?”

A tear fell to his waist despite the glinting heat in her eyes of the beastblood demanding to be fulfilled. “Ek Unslaad Shul,” she whispered but he felt a power behind them. “Her unending sun.”

All he could do was stare at her as he took in the information. She had loved him as they fought back to back. Every late night of war planning. Every moment he had taken for granted and she had loved him anyway. Not Ulfric, the future High King, but him. Galmar Stone-Fist.

He sat up quickly making her flinch and look away. She’d made herself vulnerable to him and now she feared rejection. It was not rejection he had in mind, nay. “Look at me, wife,” he whispered. Her body shivered as the sweat of her beast heat dried on her. “Let me do this properly,” he told her once she met his eyes.

It was easy to jerk the leather strip free from his neck, her ring falling into his palm with a soft thump. He slid the ring onto her finger, her body shuddering in pent up emotion. Aye she was a Dragonborn, a hero of many titles. But she was still just a woman no matter how many beasts thrummed through her blood. 

“I do,” he whispered as he lifted her chin to force her to meet his eyes. “Now and forever.”

Her lips were hard against his, her body heating once again. He’d never been much of a soft lover, but then pre-battle sex was always rushed. This, with her, felt entirely different. The beast in her demanded more from him. Love and rough. A mixture of himself he didn’t really know how to give her, but she only complained when he wouldn’t enter her immediately.

“Aye, lass,” he told her roughly as he jerked the breast band down. “I will taste all of you, mark your skin,” he told before sucking on her neck. “And when your body is littered with my love, then I will give you what your beast craves.”

Her moan was low as she rocked her clothed hips against him. “Galmar,” she near sobbed when his teeth dug into her skin.

“Aye, wife,” he returned. “All will know you’re mine, even in armor.”

Galmar took his time mapping her writhing body after he moved her under him. Her growls were feral the lower he licked, kissed, and bit on her body. Never in his life did he think he would find such behavior so arousing, but he did. The evidence was pressing painfully against his loincloth.

He understood she was begging to be filled, but he had no intention of merely mounting and rutting her like she was some prostitute. She would have a release first. Though with each passing second it was harder to control his own need.

“My love? Perhaps you know a spell to muffle our noises as not to wake the household?” He asked her as he looked up at her from her belly button. She was disheveled, wonderfully so. It took her a moment to understand what he was asking for, then she was mumbling a spell, the space around the room forming a shield before it disappeared.

Either it worked, or it didn’t. No matter which, nothing would stop him from burying his mouth between his wife’s long legs. He moaned when her back arched off the bed, a near howl leaving her throat at the surprise attack. Talos it was intoxicating. Bedding her, yes, but bedding a beastly her… There were no words for that. 

His tongue worked quickly around the nub, the occasional flick of his tongue over it as he sucked. Valera’s blunt nails dug into his forearms as her hips rocked against him, then her body froze as her juices covered his tongue. He lapped her like a dog until her body melted into the furs.

With her body limp, he stood from the bed and began to remove his smallclothes as quickly as possible. When he looked back to the bed, she was on all fours facing him, her teeth bared and her hair unraveled as it hung around her face. 

It should scare him and maybe one day it might have if he didn’t know about the _were_ that once lived inside of her. He approached the side of the bed his hands grabbing handful of her hair. He’d seen many a wolf mate in the wilds, he just hoped mimicking a power play was what he was supposed to do.

Her growl was low making his cock twitch in anticipation. He jerked her up and nipped her lip before roughly turning her so that her ass was to him. The moisture between her legs shined and he couldn’t help but use the head of his cock to smear it. Her growl was just for show but he gripped the black locks tighter anyway. 

Then he slammed home. Her body shuddered at the intrusion, her animalistic craving being fulfilled as he pulled back and pushed into her roughly once more. 

“Is this what you desire my beautiful beast?” He asked her huskily, jerking his hips hard into her again. He smiled when she whined pathetically. “I will give you all you ask of me, love,” he told her before thrusting into her in earnest. There was no point in staving off his release, not when it was what she needed so badly.

Pulling her tight against his hips, he filled her, their moans swirled around each other in his release.

But there was something he forgot when it came to wild beasts. 

One mating wasn’t enough.


	8. Chapter 8

It had been a long day. Month if he was honest. Unable to sleep, he let the guards guide him to Hjerim so he could see with his own eyes that his left hand was well.

He knew it was in the middle of the night, but the housecarl he’d assigned to Valera had taken it upon himself to sleep by the door in case the healer came by again. Ulfric was glad in his choice.

“I merely wish to make sure all is well, Calder,” he assured the housecarl. “I will leave guards outside on my exit so you can rest. She will need the added protection in her recovery.”

“Of course, Jarl Ulfric,” Calder replied with a bow before disappearing to the basement entrance.

He didn’t want to wake them, he just wanted to peek in and see with his own eyes. Especially after seeing her so pale. Ulfric stood outside the door listening for any sign that he would be interrupting. When no sounds came, he stepped through quietly, letting the door close behind him as his eyes and ears were bombarded with rutting.

“Thank Talos,” Galmar said as he slammed roughly into his wife her pleased cries making his cock twitch to life.

Ulfric looked away from the desired filled golden eyes, turning his back. “I apologize, brother!” He said quickly. “There were no sounds outside the door, I only meant to check on you both.”

Ulfric squeezed his eyes closed at the moans that came from Valera, Galmar’s following. He couldn’t turn around at Galmar’s quiet request and not give away his own arousal. The low growl behind him was unexpected.

“Hush now, love,” Galmar soothed. “I’ve filled your womb five times and I’ve little left to give. I need aid.”

Need aid? Five times? What in the name of Talos was Galmar suggesting?

“Ulfric, I will say this quickly because the heat in her blood will not be sated long,” Galmar told him. “A side effect of being Dragonborn is the heat. I cannot be ready to mate again so soon, even with another drop of skooma. I must ask a very personal favor of the only person she and I trust with our lives.”

“You wish me to bed your wife?” He clarified in case he’d heard wrong. It was hard enough to care for her knowing she held no romantic feelings for him. But this?

“It’s not so different from our younger days,” Galmar said. Aye, it wasn’t but this was his wife and a woman Galmar knew Ulfric cared for. They’d shared many working women as young lads. But never a wife. “Love, I cannot,” Ulfric heard him whisper, a feminine whimper making Ulfric twitch inside his leggings.

This was likely going to come back to haunt him. “Aye, I’ll help,” he said finally. 

“I can’t thank you enough,” Galmar replied. Ulfric glanced at his old friend, seeing the exhaustion in his frame as his wife shivered with need on the bed next to him. “Give her a dose of healing potion.”

Ulfric did as he was told. For once. He was used to giving out the orders, however a bedchamber was rather different from a throne room. 

Gold eyes looked at him over her shoulder as he shed his clothing and knelt on the bed behind her. She bared her teeth at him making him pause. She looked more like a wolf in this position.

“You must assert dominance,” Galmar whispered sleepily. 

“That feels more like rape,” Ulfric stated none too gently.

“Aye, but it’s not. Tis what the blood demands,” he answered. “Would not lie to you, brother.” Galmar inhaled sharply. “Do not mark her,” he told him, meeting his eyes. “If you do, she will kill you. At least I think so since I’ve already marked her. Talos I have no idea.”

That was… unsettling. Ulfric noticed the bloodied bite marks on his friends chest and shoulder. “And if she marks me?”

“I do not know,” Galmar answered, his eyes already closing from his exhaustion. “Likely kill any woman you tried to bed. Or marry. But only in the heat, I think.” Galmar sighed. “This is all new, brother.”

It wasn’t long until Galmar’s soft snore filled his ears. This was… insane. He had to push his personal feelings aside. Galmar had entrusted this situation to him and he needed to just fulfill it. 

Gripping Valera by the back of if neck he pushed himself inside of her and stilled. Her whimper squeezed his heart painfully until she began moving her hips. The whimper was good. It was good, he told himself. Ulfric was careful at first, gentle. But she was unhappy with his treatment. 

When she removed herself and threw him onto his back, he thought for sure he was dead and Galmar would not even hear his friends demise. Instead she mounted him roughly and took, not that he wasn’t willing. But the bliss on her face as she took from made him understand. Frantic mating was what she needed. Desperation fulfilled with seed. 

So he gave her what she needed. After he filled her, he carefully rose while still buried inside of her and lay her on her back. He wasn’t sure how long he had until she would demand more so he waited. He gave her a drink of water and licked the droplet from her lip as her eyes glared at him. 

The moan that left him was immediate when he felt her squeeze herself around his still hard length. It had been so long since he’d bedded a woman. There just hadn’t been time nor did he have the energy.

Ulfric gripped her shoulders hard, using his weight to hold her down as he gave a rough thrust of his hips. Her eyes fluttered, her mouth falling open… With a menacing smile, he didn’t hold back. Her cries were the most beautiful thing he’d heard in a long while as she easily and eagerly took his offering.


	9. Chapter 9

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Apologies for delay. Sciatica flares are rough.

When she awakened, she was surrounded by warmth and skin. An embarrassed flush lit her skin as the nights activities rushed through her brain. She’d been desperate for mating. She’d gone too long without her potion that helped with that certain side effect of the curse.

Why hadn’t the cure taken everything? Why did it leave her with bits and pieces of a wolf inside of her?

She opened her eyes, the dawn spilling through the windows. Galmar was playing with a strand of her hair, his lips pressed against her brow. He’d been forced to share her last night. “I’m sorry,” she whispered shakily. He dropped her hair and lifted her chin, a tear slipping free. “I’m sorry,” she repeated. She felt Ulfric stir behind her, his hand pulling her hips closer to him as he lay his forehead against her shoulder blade. She would not get to talk openly.

“You cannot be at fault for the side effects of dragon blood, love,” he told her gently. Dragon blood? Was that what he told Ulfric? “How long since the last time this happened?”

“A year or more,” she answered quietly. “It’s too late to prevent pregnancy,” she whispered, begging him to forgive her if she carried Ulfric’s child.

“If you carry a child, I’m sure I poured enough inside you before I begged for my brother’s aid,” he told her with a small smile that reached his eyes. “You were very hungry, love.”

It was embarrassing. Her face burned in mortification. “Did I hurt either of you?”

“Nay,” came the answer in unison. “Wore us both out,” Ulfric added with a chuckle. “But the bad news is that you marked me. Talos I’d never seen anyone move that fast.”

“So long as I remember my weekly potion, nothing should come of it,” she told him. “I’m truly sorry.”

Ulfric rose up to meet her eyes as he moved a wayward strand of messy hair from her face. “What will happen if your heat consumes you again now that you’ve marked me?”

“Any scent I smell on you…” she squeezed her eyes closed and swallowed. Vilkas had bound her mouth when they’d mated. “I will rip your partner to shreds.” She couldn’t open her eyes to see the looks the men were giving her. It was too much. 

“And if I mark you?”

“If I smell another woman’s scent on you, it is you that will die,” she whispered as tears spilled over. “Did you mark me?”

“Nay, lass,” he told her before kissing her shoulder. “You needn’t worry so much. We’ll make sure you have everything you need for your potions. Not that I’m opposed to helping again.”

Galmar’s laughter was soft but genuine. It helped calm her nerves. “Once we clean up you may want to drop the magic barrier you put up. Gave poor Ulfric a sight last night when he came to check on you.”

“A gorgeous sight you mean,” Ulfric teased. “Nothing more beautiful than seeing what I saw.”

“Talos,” she muttered. “You two go get me a tub to bathe in.”

The men laughed rowdily. “And now we are expected to do her bidding, Galmar? Me? A jarl? Expected to haul a heavy tub up the stairs?”

“Aye,” Galmar answered with false seriousness. “Only seems fair after filling her so much. May even have to wash her ourselves.”

She groaned and sat up as the men continued to tease her. She felt a so much better physically. Tired and a little sore, but good. “Unless you’d like Calder to see me in the nude, I suggest you two do as I say or I will do it myself.”

“No need to threaten, love,” Galmar told her before nipping her shoulder. He smirked when she gasped.

“None of that! I can’t possibly take another cock right now!”

She lay back in bed, pulling the furs with her as she watched the men dress. They smiled and teased each other freely, but then neither were in the throne room. 

“Should we have Calder start heating water?” Ulfric asked as he laced his leggings.

“Nay, just the tub. Magic can take care of the rest.”

The men brought the tub up and placed it by the fire. Galmar kneeled to tend it as Ulfric leaned over her on the bed. She wasn’t sure exactly what she was supposed to do, but she accepted his soft kiss anyway. “I will wait downstairs and keep my nephew occupied,” he told them before stepping out and pulling the door shut.

She slid out of the furs and stood on shaky legs. “Are you sure you can’t take anymore, love?” Her husband asked as he stood in front of her and wrapped his arms around her. “I might have another in me.”

“I can feel that,” she told him with a smile. “But I am truly sore.”

“Aye,” he whispered before planting a kiss on her mouth. “Ulfric was rather upset with having to take you so roughly.”

“Is this going to hurt your relationship with him?”

“Nay, because we both care for you,” he told her honestly. 

She licked her lips nervously, “What if I bear his child, Galmar?”

“We look enough alike that no one ever need to know,” he told her. “For anyone to walk in when they did,” He sighed, “It was a relief that it was him. And not just because he and I could pass as brothers, but because _we_ trust him.”

“What now?”

“You let me wash you,” he whispered before kissing her. “Plait your hair, dress you,” he continued. “Then we will go downstairs because our son is bouncing to see if his love healed you.”

Her heart couldn’t feel anymore full than it did in that moment.

* * *

Court, as usual, was nothing short of mentally draining. It probably didn’t help that he couldn’t stop thinking of bedding his dear friend’s wife. It had been a week and he was craving her.

“My Jarl,” he heard his steward say quietly. Ulfric wasn’t sure why he was whispering. With his left and right hand on each side of the throne, there was no point. “Three Imperials have requested an audience with you.”

Intriguing. “Strip them of weapons and bring them forward.” He felt his most trusted close in closer on his sides. Valera leaned against his throne looking more of a working girl and less of a Dragonborn. Likely to make their guests think her less dangerous. The mark on his arm tingled pleasantly at her closeness, her protectiveness calming his own worries. 

Two men and one woman were brought forward, all three knelt with practiced eased that made him curious as to what in Talos was happening. With the Emperor dead, he wondered what these three could possibly offer him.

“Jarl Ulfric,” a man spoke. He heard Valera’s breath catch, the bite on his arm seeming to thrum its own heartbeat. Thank Talos her face was covered with the hood. “We come to deliver news if it has not already reached you.”

“What news is that, Imperial?”

The woman flinched but she kept her head bowed politely. Likely nobility. “Over two years ago the three of us joined the Imperial’s.” The bite mark began to burn. With the way Galmar moved, ever so slightly, he was feeling it too, of that Ulfric was sure. “We gained their trust and rose to the rank of the Emperor’s personal guard.” He held his breath. “A fortnight ago, we seized our chance and assassinated that which we swore to protect.”

“Why?” He asked doing his best to ignore the mark. 

“In the name of Talos, my Jarl. And in the name of the Bear of Eastmarch.” His father? Had his father kept allies hidden to him?

“As many Nord’s know, we’ve lost brothers and sisters to the enemy. Perhaps you’d remove your helmets and let me judge for myself if what you say is true.”

“Aye,” the man answered. Ulfric had suspected, but the moment black hair fell from the helmet, he knew for sure. “I am Vladric Bear-Blade, this is my wife and brother.”

“Bear-Blade,” he repeated.

“Aye, I left a note behind for my daughter to join your cause,” the man said, his gold eyes desperate. “Perhaps you could tell me if she lives.”

So they did not know…

The bite mark thrummed, pleading to him but still Valera had not muttered a word. He wondered if she even knew what the mark had done. What it created. 

“Perhaps,” Ulfric finally said. “But only after you tell me how you escaped the Thalmor in the Embassy.”

The predatory smile that lit the elder man’s face was one he’d seen many times from Valera when he’d given her an order. “As much as I’d like to say we slaughtered them all, there were only a handful in the palace at the time.” 

The woman’s eyes sparkled dangerously. “They were so very trusting of the traitor Nord’s, they did not see us coming until it was too late.”

“We stole the best horses and rode until they collapsed beneath us,” the other man said. “By then we were in Skyrim. Finding the nearest Stormcloak was easy since you’ve taken over much in our absence. Getting us here was much more difficult.”

“The Stormcloak that found you?”

“Rolaf I believe his name was,” the woman said. “Fair skinned, red hair.”

“One of my most loyal,” Ulfric commented. “Had it been another, you might not be breathing.”

“It would be what we deserved, Jarl Ulfric,” Vladric stated. 

“Galmar, how long would it take you to find the proof of this letter they left behind?” Ulfric asked grateful Valera had yet to make herself known to her family below.

“Not long,” he answered. Ulfric knew that tone. It was nearby and he’d already seen it. 

While Galmar left to tend to it, Ulfric allowed the three to strip from the Imperial trash they were wearing, all three seeming to breathe a sigh of relief as it was carried away. For Valera’s sake, he hoped they weren’t lying.

While they waited, the three remained on their knees, heads down as if they expected the chopping block at any moment. And they probably did. What they had done, by all accounts from his spies, was rare. To allow all of Skyrim to think them traitor, infiltrate enemy lines, and assassinate the Emperor.

When his right hand returned offering an old leather bound journal to him, he knew what they said to be true. This item was an expensive thing to leave behind for their daughter. One that would be expected to be searched for when returning to an empty house. 

“With the words ringing true, now we shall see if you are recognized,” Ulfric said finally, closing the journal and setting it aside. “Dragonborn?” The relief he felt from her was immediate as she pushed herself off the back of his throne with her hip.

Gasps were heard as the hood slipped off silently, a black braid barely visible where she kept it inside her leathers but her eyes unmistakable. “Aye, my Jarl,” she answered steadily. “These are my clan.”

Ulfric watched the father sag in relief, the mother began to weep, and the uncle shaking his head in humor as if to say: Of course she’s the Dragonborn we heard rumors of.

“Will they serve me with the same loyalty you have given me?” He asked, her answer was felt in the mark. _They already do, my Jarl._

“Aye,” she answered. “And if they do not, I will cut them down myself.”

The uncle chuckled at that, “I’m glad some of my lesson’s stuck in that thick head.”

“Loyalty is stronger than blood,” she said. “But I hope to prove that wrong in the coming days.”

“Jarl Ulfric, can I have permission to greet my daughter?”

Ulfric chuckled. “Aye.” As an after-thought. “And perhaps she will introduce you to her husband.”

“You got married?” the woman said excitedly. “Oh, my child, I am sorry we could not witness it but this was something we had to do.”

The four moved away to the tables and Galmar moved closer. “I do hope we don’t regret this,” he whispered. 

“Aye,” Ulfric agreed. “Did you feel…”

“Her feelings? Aye.”

“Is that normal?”

Galmar chuckled, “You act like I’ve mated Dragonborn all my life, brother.” Ulfric shook his head. “We’re both in unchartered territory.”

“We must ensure we don’t let her question our trust,” Ulfric whispered seriously. “How am I to take a wife if we are already bound by the mark?” Ulfric knew she hadn’t done it purposely, but he couldn’t deny the warmth he felt because of it.

“I don’t know, but we have time to figure it out,” Galmar answered with a sympathetic pat to Ulfric’s shoulder.


	10. Chapter 10

After what Galmar told her, she was grateful he hadn’t seen the visions in her mind as she looked at her family. There were some secrets she knew she had no right to tell. But Galmar said he only felt her emotions. She would need to learn how to keep from amplifying them.

They were in Hjerim, Asuric talking animatedly about how she’d rescued him from a sure death to giving him a new life he’d never dreamed of. To being trained with Companion’s to all the titles she had earned in their absence. And how his own father feared his mother’s wrath. That admission had them all laughing.

But there were some questions she knew she could not answer with her son and hoursecarl there. 

She enjoyed the feel of Galmar’s arms around her as the rest of the guests were occupied at the dinner table.

“There are secret’s you are going to learn tonight that you must keep between us,” she whispered to him.

“I will do as you ask, love,” he returned. “As I have already done.”

“I fear he must know eventually.” She knew Galmar understood whom she was speaking of.

“Time will tell.”

By the time Asuric was asleep, the adults had found seating with mead in their hands. 

“I will be here to make the morning meal, my Thane,” Calder told her with a bow.

“Thank you, Calder, have a good night,” she replied with a smile.

As soon as Calder left, Valera used a magic barrier to keep Asuric from hearing their conversation. 

“The Companion’s? Really, Valera?” Her Uncle Thom started. “And how much does your husband know?”

“Of werewolves? More than I wanted to but what’s done is done,” Galmar answered. “There was an emergency with her sister.”

Thom nodded in understanding. “And what have you told him of our lineage?”

“Nothing,” she admitted, squeezing Galmar’s forearm in apology. “I’ve been distracted by many duties.”

“Not your fault, love,” he told her with sincerity. “It’s not like we got off to a good start. Fill me in now so I know what to expect.”

“As you know, Bear-Blade is a name with much history,” she began. “But it wasn’t given to my ancestor’s as history tells it: An honor bestowed upon by an old king. Instead, it was a name forged through battle by our family’s enemies.” She breathed before meeting Galmar’s eyes. “Where the Companion’s gain favor through Hircine to become a werewolf, my family was born into were-life. It was told that Hircine was so awed by the hunting prowess of my early clan that he granted them the honor of lycanthropy.”

“I thought you cured yourself of wolf-blood?” Galmar asked, confused.

“Aye, but I was born into a werebear clan.”

Galmar’s eyebrows raised in shock. “Never in our line has the blood skipped a generation. But we had thought that because her mother chose not to be brought into the clan that way that maybe it affected her blood,” Thom commented. He had accepted the gift long ago.

“Until now, Dragonborn,” her father teased. “It would seem the Gods had already decided your destiny before you were conceived.”

“I get the language through minds, as I do my Companion’s siblings, but because of the dragon blood, Hircine could not keep me.”

Galmar blew out a breath, she was sure he could feel her nervousness even though she tried to mask it. “I still love you, Valera,” he told her with a chuckle. “I think I handled this much better than watching three men shift into a beast.” 

She looked at him as he was lost in thought. 

“I suppose this was why you took to them so easily? And why they are your family?”

“Aye,” she answered her husband before turning her attention to her family. “How many Bear-Blades would swear fealty to Ulfric?”

Her father smiled, “All of us. And they are already on their way.”

“Husband,” Valera said sweetly, immediately gaining his suspicion. “Is there any way you can speak to our Jarl about allowing me to lead my clan in battle?”

“Of course, but I can’t sway him.”

“I know,” she answered. “I have some things to speak with him about, would you mind?”

“Nay, I’ll walk to the Palace doors,” her husband replied. “I doubt our spare beds are very comfortable,” Galmar said, addressing their guests, “But Calder made sure you three have a place in the basement.”

“We thank you,” Thom said. “We rode hard for some days, today our first meal in two of those. We are worn down.”

Valera said goodnight to her family, relief at seeing them pouring through her skin. They returned it in kind.

“Would it be okay if I checked on Asuric?” her mother asked quietly. “He’s my first grandchild and I can’t help it.”

Valera smiled, “Aye.” When he came of age, he’d get to choose to accept the gift or not. There was no shame in her family if they did not want it. 

-

They walked quietly through the small alley’s as Galmar took her to the Palace. “He won’t be able to keep his hands off of you,” Galmar said quietly. 

What? “Who? Oh…” Right. “Perhaps you should stay then.”

“Nay,” Galmar replied. “I’m afraid, my love, that Hircine was not cleansed from you. Unless he was and it truly is the dragon blood. It’s hard to say.”

“I don’t understand.”

“Ulfric carries your mark, he felt what I felt today,” Galmar told her, bringing their walk to a stop as panic seized her gut. “None of us know but it is what it is. You have a claim on us both.”

“I never meant for that,” she started, her voice cracking.

“Hush, I’m not angry. It was I that begged him to help me.” He kissed her lips gently. “If he wishes to bed you, and you aren’t opposed, then please give him what you desire.”

“Galmar,” she started. 

“I get you all night, love,” he whispered against her lips as his hands gripped her tight to him. “And I will gladly take you once you’re home without jealousy or pain because I know you are mine.” His chuckle was deep. “Is that arousal I feel coming from my marks, love? I wonder if we’re close enough for Ulfric to feel it too.”

Before she could answer his mouth was hard on hers, demanding and giving in equal measure. He moaned into her mouth when her arousal intensified before he broke free completely.

“Go to him and when you return, you are mine,” he growled.

* * *

When she entered Ulfric’s chambers, she scented the air. It couldn’t possibly be the wolf or the bear. This had to be dragon. Nothing could grasp her so tightly. 

Since Vilkas had taken care of her during her last heat, she would have to ask him. Especially now when his looks of confusion had her more confused than before. Maybe Ulfric never need know about the wolf part of her. If only for the safety of her other family.

The door had hardly closed behind her when Ulfric was on her, likely feeling her need through their bond. He began stripping her with urgency as she closed her eyes and put up a barrier. There was no need for rumors to fly through Windhelm.

As soon as he had her on his bed, his cock buried deeply inside of her, she marked him again. She didn’t know why only that instinct demanded that he be reminded of his place. 

“Valera,” he moaned into her neck as his hips slapped against her. “I am yours,” he whispered.

“I don’t know how to control it,” she told him.

“Then don’t,” he commanded before crushing his mouth to hers.

-

They lay panting, sated before she began to laugh. “What?” He asked quietly.

“Had I not put up a barrier, the whole Palace would have heard me cry out your name,” she answered. “Also, I originally came to speak with you but Galmar thought it fun to arouse me before sending me in here.”

“Ah,” he replied with a chuckle. “Then I shall thank my brother tomorrow.” Ulfric sighed before removing himself from the bed. “Now, let’s get down to the heart of things, shall we? While you dress, otherwise your husband will have you in my bed, then I will have to have you again. It will be an endless circle because we both desire you so.”

“I’ve got a member of my guild snooping through Elisif’s things,” she told him as she stretched. “I know you do not want to wed her, so I thought you’d allow me to see what they find before you pass judgement.”

“I don’t see the harm.”

“Ulfric, when we take Solitude…” She paused. She knew she was his left hand, but being his lover complicated the political part of things.

“You worry?”

“Nay,” she said, waving the thought away. “My entire clan is coming to swear fealty to you. They should began arriving immediately.”

“How many?”

“I do not know how many have survived,” she answered truthfully. “Becoming Dragonborn…”

“Changed your duties, I understand.” He answered with a soft smile before pouring her a glass of mead. “You are nervous? Why?” _Damn mark._

“My Jarl,” she said, purposely putting her back on his left. “What I feel I need to tell you cannot ever reach others ears. Can I trust you with personal secrets for political reasons?”

“I wish you could sense what I feel like I can with you but I don’t think the mark works that way,” he told her softly. “Perhaps the dragon bond is for us to protect you?” 

“I don’t know how it works,” she admitted, the guilt of everything rushed through her as emotion clogged her throat.

“Valera, love, do not worry. I hold no ill will for this mark you’ve given me,” he told her as he wrapped his arms around her. “If anything, I feel honored that you trust me as much as I trust you.”

“What I have to tell you is deeply private, Ulfric.”

“I would not break my trust with you anymore than I would with Galmar.”

With a nod, she once again told the quick version of her family lineage, leaving out the part of the Companion’s. They were neutral and she had sworn to keep them so. Ulfric just stared at her, his eyes portraying shock as he silently thought it all through.

“All of the Bear-Blade?”

“Most,” she answered. “Those blood born into it, and those that accept the gift.”

He blew out a breath that sounded just like Galmar’s had. She almost laughed when his raised an amused brow at her. He’d sensed her thought.

“Okay,” he said finally.

“Just like that?”

“Aye,” he answered, his eyes meeting hers. “You’ve never lied to me.”

“If you would give my family to me, under my leadership as we take Solitude, I’d like to surprise you with something,” she told him with a sly smile. “I am also Thane of Solitude, so if there is evidence against the city I will be expected to carry out judgement for the citizens.”

“And if the crimes are against me only?” Ulfric asked with a smile of his own.

“Then I will do your bidding, my Jarl,” she answered. “Would you like to know before we take Solitude in your name?”

He tapped his finger against his desk, thinking. “Nay, I think I shall like that surprise as well.” He smiled before tugging her onto his lap. “Now, return to Galmar before I carry you back to bed,” he whispered before kissing her thoroughly.

-

True to his word, Galmar claimed her as soon as she entered their bedchamber. She barely had time to get the barrier up before he began to make her scream.


	11. Chapter 11

It took three months for the last of her family to arrive. The call had been sent out and they’d answered, no matter where they had been. Ulfric had noticed how nervous his soldiers were around the predator’s, most of which were golden eyed and black haired Nord’s. Those that weren’t were either brought in through marriage or adopted as he’d learned. But they all held an animalistic air about them. Ulfric found it interesting to see a clan of werebears dining under the banners of a bear. His father would love it. Maybe his father had known…

With each victory Valera brought, the closer they came to Solitude. And he was eager to see what surprises she had for him. They were so close he could almost taste it. 

When he felt the tingle in his marks, he glanced at Galmar to see the man smirking. Their Dragonborn was home and from the flittering pulse, victory was with her.

“The Dragonborn returns victorious!” His steward called before moving out of the way to let the woman into the hall. Bear-Blade clan cheered, the noise deep and rumbly. Almost bear like even in human form.

Ulfric stood as she knelt before him. “Dovahkiin, what news do you bring?”

She stood, a feral smile on her gorgeous lips, “Snowhawk is yours, my Jarl!”

-

Galmar watched as his wife greeted family with her son on her shoulders. He couldn’t believe there was a time he’d been so upset with having to marry her. Now he couldn’t picture this life without her or the boy in it. 

But the disappointment he felt when she showed no signs of pregnancy ate at him. He wouldn’t let her see it though. She would feel guilt and she shouldn’t.

Galmar watched as one of her thieves approached her silently from behind, her entire family on alert before she greeted the man with a hug, even with Asuric on her shoulders. The boy and the red-haired man seemed to know each other. But then the Thieves Guild was based in Riften. 

“We wait on Bear-Blade and Rolaf now,” Ulfric whispered.

“Aye,” Galmar agreed. 

Whether they won the fort or not they would march on Solitude. 

As for their personal relationship with Valera… They had figured nothing out. Instead, Galmar had shared his wife freely with Ulfric. Whether they bedded her in her own bed or she came to visit Ulfric in the night. Both men were consumed by her. 

-

Valera could feel the men’s eyes on her, even with her highly protective family keeping her in their sights. They knew what she had suspected simply by her scent.

Pregnant.

But she didn’t know which man’s child she carried. Thom had agreed, unhappily, that he would tell the family to keep it under wraps until after the battle they all came for. Thank Talos she was a larger woman, lest her waist would already be bulging.

Other than strong emotions and some emotionally pushed thoughts, the men had no clue and she aimed to keep it that way. There was little privacy for her now but most of her thoughts were her own as she learned about controlling this new part of her. It was difficult and required a lot of meditation with the Grey Beards but she was learning. 

In fact, she thought with a mischievous smirk, they’d taught her how to push some feelings more than others. And one she had concentrated on first was arousal. With the Jarl surrounded by the safety of the Bear-Blade clan, she decided she’d test it out. She wasn’t sure if she could just push it on one or if both men were effected.

She’d find out soon enough.

Asuric bounced off with Bryn leaving her time to gather a plate of food and find a place at the table with Galmar in her sights. 

It had been rude and downright sadistic to practice on drunks she’d come across, but she had. There was no going back once she’d given them the thoughts of a plump woman. They’d all had nice dreams at least.

Galmar and Ulfric were talking as she pushed thoughts to him. Galmar’s hands on her skin, her moans muffled by furs. Memories of their last romp. She saw him stiffen and look for her in the hall. She was more difficult to find in a sea of black hair, but he found her.

When his attention was back on Ulfric, she pushed again. Skin against skin, the heavy scent of her arousal…

She chuckled when he had to grab Ulfric’s shoulder to steady himself. 

“You are truly awful, cousin,” Valeer said, her smile taking the hate out of the words.

“Can you tell what I’m doing?” She asked. “Am I too obvious?”

“No,” Valeer answered. “But as a woman that knows the look of arousal from men, and seeing you concentrate like that, it wasn’t difficult to figure out.” 

With the men in question back to speaking, Valera turned her focus on Ulfric. When he stiffened, Valeer chuckled. “That’s a nice party trick.”

“One of the only perks of being Dragonborn,” Valera admitted giving the men at the throne her best smile as they looked at her. They’d caught on quickly. She quickly sent them an image of what she wanted as soon as they could retire for the evening. Galmar laughed heartily as Ulfric winked at her.

“What did you tell them?”

“That I wanted the bath tub brought to my bedchamber,” she told her cousin, both women laughing. 

“I wish I could get a man to do that for me,” she whispered dreamily. “If only he knew I existed anyway.”

“Who is it? I can’t promise you anything,” she quickly added. “They have to have feelings for you to be able to… how do I say it?”

“To accept the suggestion?”

“Aye,” Valera answered. “Though I may have made a match in Whiterun. Only time will tell.”

“So it isn’t just making them do your bidding?”

“Nay, they have to want to. No different than any other relationship. Just a different way of communication.” Valeer whispered the name in her ear, making her chuckle. “Aye, I can do that but you need to be standing close enough to him for him to see you.”

The man Valeer was pining for was a huge Nord. Bigger than Galmar but much more rough around the edges. At least visibly. 

“Go sit down next to him and strike up a conversation then I will see if I can do it.”

“You’re the best,” Valeer told her before kissing her temple.

“You’re only saying that because we grew up as sisters!”

Valera waited until Valeer was seated next to the man. The nord wiped his mouth and bowed his head, his cheeks coloring lightly. Ah, yes, that Valera could work with. She concentrated hard on the man, filling his mind with a bathtub and steaming water, rough calloused hands washing Valeer’s back. His cheeks reddened further.

She concentrated on Valeer. _He wants you. Ask him plainly._

Valera watched in delight as the man let Valeer touch his bared forearm and lean in to whisper in his ear. Then they were up and coming her way.

“Just let me say goodnight to my cousin,” Valeer said as the man waited for her. “Thank you,” Valeer whispered in her ear.

“You will have to make all the first moves,” Valera whispered back. “He fears his own bulk.” Valera chuckled when Valeer whispered a vulgar remark. 

With a smirk she waited until the pair were just out of normal hearing range. “Valeer!” Valera called loudly across the hall. “Please don’t break him, eh? He’s one of our best foot soldiers.” 

Valeer winked at her while her new partner chuckled in amusement. Hopefully that would help the man open up a little. If not, then she knew Valeer would do the rest.

* * *

“I see you’ve learned a new trick,” Galmar stated as he and Ulfric sat the tub down in front of the fire.

“Part of the bonding,” she told him with a smirk. “Well, the Grey Beards said that I could do that to whom I’ve bonded with, but I can do it to anyone I choose so long as their mind is open.”

“So you chose to give me an erection on my throne?” Ulfric asked as he stripped his tunic and waited for her to enter the warming water.

“One day I’ll have you on your throne,” she teased causing Galmar to chuckle as he shed his armor.

“What did your guild friend deliver?” Ulfric asked.

“Tis a surprise, dear,” she scolded. 

Galmar smirked at his brother’s pout. The man loved and hated surprises. “Was the battle rough?”

“Nay,” she answered as she slipped under the water. “In fact I got to do little more than call for animal allies. Your troops were very eager to take the fort.”

“Rolaf reported in after you’d gone to make sure the newcomers were settled,” Ulfric told her. “We’ve won that fort as well.”

“Then we march to Solitude?” She asked as she scrubbed the dirt from her skin.

“We begin plans in the morning,” Galmar told her. “Tonight, I think that we will give you exactly what you asked for.”

Galmar’s leggings grew tighter the closer she got to finishing her bath. 

“A night between us both,” Ulfric finished as he stood and began to unlace his leather breeches. “Unless you’ve changed your mind?”

“Nay,” she replied huskily. “I wouldn’t want to be anywhere else.”


	12. Chapter 12

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I wish to apologize for the delay in updates. It has been a rough week, mentally and emotionally.
> 
> * * *

Valera bit her lip to keep herself from crying out as Ulfric rolled his hips into her, Galmar watching the scene with his own desired filled eyes. They were in the middle of camp in Ulfric’s tent, surrounded by Stormcloak’s as Ulfric bedded her on the table.

It hadn’t began like this. 

They’d been finalizing their plans, leaning over the map of Solitude when Ulfric started to tease her with light touches. Her light travel armor had been pushed up as she lay face down over the map on the table, mead spilling onto the surface with each thrust of hips. 

When her moan escaped, Galmar finally stood. “It would seem I need to keep your mouth full to keep you quiet,” he whispered lovingly as he unlaced his breeches. Valera opened her mouth for him eagerly.

* * *

The delighted surprise in Ulfric’s eyes as he took her new armor in filled her heart with warmth.

“This the surprise you spoke of? Bear armor?” He asked her as she met him at the position they’d agreed on, her mother at her side.

“Partially, my Jarl,” she answered. “The rest you shall see in due time.”

“Shall we then?” Galmar asked roughly, eager to fight. 

Valera smiled before turning her face to the sky, “OD AH VIING!” She shouted to the heavens. She felt the answer. “He comes to our aid, I shall meet you soon,” she told the men with a smile. “Bears of Skyrim! We march in the name of Ulfric Stormcloak, son of the Bear of Eastmarch!”

The battle waged, her blood screaming for glory as her arrows loosed from her bow. 

“My daughter, you fight well,” her mother whispered. “We near the meeting point, are you ready to give your lover his gift?”

“Aye, Mother,” Valera whispered. “Bear-Blades! It’s time to show our teeth!”

Imperials screamed as humans turned to bears in front of them. It was… incredible to say the least as she watched her family rip the enemy to pieces. Nothing would be left to stop them from the victory she craved.

Seeing her husband and lover take in the bears as she and her human family, all in bear armor, marched to them was exhilarating. So many decades they’d hid in the night. Perhaps Ulfric knew now why his father had taken the bear as his emblem. His seal.

Stormcloak soldiers had no idea what to think of their Dragonborn commanding an army of humans and bears. They would not know it was her family in their true form. 

Leaving her mother in charge of their flock, she followed the men to the last of the leadership the Empire had in Skyrim. Today would be one for the history books.

* * *

With General Tullius dead, Ulfric released a sigh of relief. It was done. Skyrim belonged to the Nord’s once more. If only his father had lived to see this day, to see this woman wear his insignia with pride.

As soon as the last of the Imperial’s were dealt with, the citizens were called upon to join the Thane of Solitude in the courtyard. Most were scared they’d be cut down, Ulfric could see that. But the fury he felt radiating from the mark was not for the people, but directed at Elisif. 

Ulfric wished there was a way to remember this sight: The woman he loved standing on the steps of the Blue palace, her clan in human and bear form around her and himself as a layer of protection. And the weak Elisif shivering from the terror of the scene in front of her. 

They waited as the last of the citizen’s entered the courtyard, all squeezed in tightly to hear the Thane speak with Jordis, her housecarl, standing just in front of her with her sword at the ready.

“It is my duty as the Thane of Solitude to protect the citizens that reside here,” Valera started, her voice loud and clear.

“Duty?!” Elisif screeched. “You betrayed me! You are no Thane here!”

“And you are no Jarl,” Valera stated coldly. “A Jarl would not make deals with the Thalmor!” Murmurs arose in the audience. “Aye, it’s true!” Valera continued. “I long suspected your former Jarl of making deals. Men disappearing, homeless children gone.”

“Do not do this,” Elisif whispered roughly.

“I have proof, written in Elisif’s own hand of the deal she was offering the Thalmor should she be officially made High Queen of Skyrim.”

Ulfric shivered at the silence.

“Men sold to them, children taken from the streets for potion testing,” Valera announced. “Women to be sold as slaves to the Thalmor’s more erotic needs. All so she could keep her power. Your lives nothing to her, only coin to her purse.”

“I would never have truly done it!” Elisif tried to argue.

“Your throne room isn’t large enough to hear the needs of the people,” Valera stated. “All the time I spent here, I never saw one citizen inside your precious palace.” 

“So I’m to be imprisoned because I wish to keep the throne room clean?” The blonde asked. Valera laughed, though it wasn’t a laugh Ulfric had ever heard before. “You filthy whore!” Elisif screamed.

Growls shook his bones as the bears rose to their feet and bared their teeth making the former jarl blanch and fall to her knees.

“They trusted you to protect them from the Thalmor,” Valera said once silence reigned again. “Instead, you try to sell them.” Valera stepped off the last step, the entirety of her clan shifted with her. “Elisif the Fair, as Thane of Solitude, I charge you with treason against the very people you swore to protect. Punishable by death as per your own laws.”

“You have no right!”

Valera’s head tilted slightly as if she was hearing the bear next to her. “Perhaps, I shall put it forth to the people and let them decide.” Elisif sobbed. “All those in favor?” Valera said as she looked out over the people of Solitude.

“AYE!” Came the loud answer.

Uflric couldn’t stop the amused chuckle. Valera had known all along and played it right into his hands, giving him the loyalty of Solitude’s people without him having to marry. It would seem her claim on him is more than just one-sided. Though he knew she would do as she was told despite the mark, he was relieved nonetheless.

This woman had almost single-handedly united all of Skyrim in his name.

“Opposed?” Valera called out, but it was met with silence. “The people of Solitude have spoken,” Valera called out. 

With a silent swing of Valera’s saber, Elisif the Fair was no more.

“Citizens of Solitude! I call on you in this time as leadership is chosen: Stay peaceful, continue on with your lives and I, Valera Bear-Blade Stone-Fist, the Thane of Solitude, will make sure your lives remain your own!”

The crowd cheered, people moving forward to touch and hug her regardless of the massive bears and still bleeding body at her feet.

It was in that moment, regardless of the formerly tarnished Bear-Blade name, that he realized he should have taken her as his wife. Begged and pleaded if he had to. But then, he respected her far too much to force her hand. Especially since her heart belonged to his dearest friend.

“Time to address your troops,” Galmar said as Valera climbed the steps to join them. He watched as the bears made their way into the empty palace where their armor await them all.

“Before that,” Valera said quietly, “I would have a word with you both.”

“There she goes ordering us around,” Ulfric grumbled teasingly.

“My apologies, my Jarl,” she purred. “Sometimes it is difficult to change my roles.”

“I shall accept your apology later,” he returned. “In private.”

She escorted the men into a small sitting room just inside the palace doors. There were no feelings coming from her to give him any idea of what she may wish to speak to them about.

“Tell me, my dears,” she began, her hands cupping their cheeks. “Will I get time to rest now that this part of our war is done?”

“Aye,” Ulfric answered as he placed his hand over hers.

“That is excellent news,” she told them with a sparkle in her eyes. “I’ve waited long enough, but now the truth must come out.”

“You love us both,” Galmar stated with chuckle.

“Oh, aye,” Valera whispered making Ulfric shudder with relief. “The heat was also successful. I am with child.”

Both men stiffened. Ulfric knew she could be carrying his heir. Or his brother’s. The fate of the life inside of her depended solely on the lineage. 

“Only my family knows and they will not speak of it until the both of you decide what we shall do. As my husband said, your looks are close enough. But… I am also bound to you both. I don’t know if I can keep myself from killing any woman Ulfric may take as his future queen.”

“Valera,” Ulfric started, his heart weighing heavily inside of him.

“Nay,” she shushed him. “You two decide. I will accept your choice.” Her sadness filled them before she clamped down on it. “If he takes a wife, it would be best for me to live as far away from Windhelm as possible.” Valera cleared her throat and dropped her hands as the sounds of human murmuring closed in. “Now, go address your troops. I have need of you both this night.”

Ulfric groaned, “Another heavy tub.” He loved her, and he would carry it but he hated it.

“Nay,” she whispered. “My home here already has a nice one near my chamber. I wish to enjoy our victory together.”

“How many houses do you have?” Galmar asked in surprise.

“Every settlement that has made me Thane,” she answered with a smirk. “You will never have to worry about sleeping in a nasty bed in your travels.”

“She truly does love us,” Galmar stated teasingly. 

“Aye, now go.”

Valera pregnant, Skyrim liberated, and the crown of High-King near his fingertips. Today was truly a day for celebration.


	13. Chapter 13

The Moot. It was not as though the gathering would be unexpected. But rather that he and Ulfric had already decided how they would handle the pregnancy. Only, they had yet to tell Valera. Instead, they had worshipped her every chance they got. 

With his wife home resting, Galmar and Ulfric were laying down the plans for their travels. With the loyal Bear-Blade clan at their sides. 

“Asuric Stone-Fist!” Galmar heard his mother-in-law say, his attention directed to them immediately. “What did your mother say about the sweet rolls?”

Asuric sighed dramatically, “That it should be eaten slowly and savored as if it were the last treat left.”

Uflric, Vladric, and Galmar chuckled. 

“Sophie Stone-Fist,” she scolded his newest child. “Pheasant legs do not belong in a lady’s pocket.”

The soft laughter from them turned into loud barks as the saddened granddaughter pulled not one or two, but three legs from her dress.

Galmar sighed as he approached the table. “Daughter, you best listen to your grandmother,” he told her gently. “You will never go hungry again, lass.”

“Yes, Pa,” she answered.

“And make sure a plate of this makes it back to your mother and Calder,” he ordered, raising his brow as he waited.

“Okay,” she said finally. “I will eat my fill here before making their plate.”

“That’s my girl,” he told her with a smile.

Two children and one on the way. Much had changed in his life.

* * *

With Elisif the Fair dead by her own treachery, this Moot was merely a formality. But some of the Jarl’s still questioned it.

“You will not marry? What of heirs?”

Galmar subtly pushed Valera forward, her pregnancy showing despite her trying to cover it. Ulfric stood, “I had planned to marry.” The Jarl’s looked at Ulfric in confusion. “Finding a strong wife loyal to all of Skyrim has proven difficult. Elisif had been an easy choice until the evidence of her betrayal came to light when she made deal with the Thalmor.”

“Aye, nasty business,” Vignar agreed. “The Dragonborn has proven her loyalty to Skyrim and her people, but she is already married to Galmar Stone-Fist.”

“Aye,” Ulfric answered.

Galmar stepped forward, as he and Ulfric agreed. “My wife has adopted two young and homeless Nord’s into the Stone-Fist clan. Not only to give the children a home and family, but because I cannot have heirs of my own.”

Valera stiffened next to him as Galmar continued.

“In all my years I have never produced a child,” Galmar stated over the murmurs. “In the time of our marriage, I could not impregnate my wife.”

“As many know, Galmar is my closet friend and shared his woes with me,” Ulfric continued. “I agreed to take his wife, my most loyal, to bed to see if she could bear children. As a result, she now carries my heir.”

“And is it true the Bear-Blade’s killed the Emperor from within?” A jarl asked over the conversation.

“Aye,” Ulfric answered as he accepted the old journal from Galmar. “Here is your proof.” He turned and gave Valera a soft kiss before whispering to her to sit down with Galmar’s assistance. A few of the old Jarl’s watched the scene with interest, but he couldn’t find himself to care. He loved her, Galmar loved her. That was that. It would not be typical, but there was no law stating he would be forced to take a wife.

Ulfric waited patiently as the Jarl’s discussed everything amongst themselves, Elisif’s letter included once it was given as evidence. There was no need for trickery. 

In the end, it was a unanimous vote to name him High King with the unneeded approval of his Mistress. They all cared for the Dragonborn, but she served him.

-

That night as he lay in his bed going over the missive’s he’d received, one caught his attention.

He knew the long elegant lines to belong to his Valera. He broke the seal of the bear and opened it, a white ring falling to the surface of his bed.

>   
> My dearest King,
> 
> That you would hold our bond in the face of such battles warms me more than I could ever tell you. You have given me much, my love, much more than I could ever thank you for.
> 
> As we speak, a passage is being made for you into Hjerim from the Palace. Galmar and I wish to keep you safe when you visit our bed. And I do hope you will do so often. Of course, with my clan taking residence in Windhelm, perhaps it would be better for us to move to the Palace. Surely you have space? Should you, the Hjerim passage will still be completed if only for my father to feel better about protecting you.
> 
> I feel better knowing it will be there.
> 
> Now, if you wouldn’t mind tossing this into the fire, I would very much prefer you between my legs.
> 
> Faithfully yours,  
> Stormblade, Thane of Windhelm  
> 

Tossing the parchment into the flames, he lifted the dragon bone ring to read the script: Ek Kodaav Jun. _Her Bear King_

Ulfric smiled, she must have known he’d be appointed and had this made, or she didn’t and had chosen to name him her king anyway. He slipped the ring onto his finger. They may not be married by law, but he felt in his heart that they were.

Talos he’d never loved anyone as much as he loved her. 

“Galmar,” he called. 

His brother entered the doorway with a smirk on his face. “I see you’ve received my wife’s gift. Does that mean you’re ready to retire for the night, High King?”

“Aye,” Ulfric replied with a chuckle as he pulled his cape on. “Let us return to our woman.”


	14. Chapter 14

The Palace of the Kings was filled with tension, the throne empty as they all awaited word. Valeer held tight to the hand that reached for her, her new husband. 

Valera’s mother and father paced nervously as Thom whittled away on a piece of wood. He wasn’t worried, his niece was a tough lass. But birth could still prove deadly, even for the strongest of people.

Galmar and Ulfric were likely wearing down the rug outside the bedchamber as the Court Wizard and Healer aided in the delivery of the first heir. Thom would laugh at the tension if it wouldn’t get him smacked by his sister. He was the older sibling for Talos sake. 

Thom looked up at the sharp inhale from his sister to see the castle steward briskly climb the stairs to address the room.

“The Dragonborn is victorious!” Thom rolled his eyes. The damn man enjoyed saying that line far too much. “She gave birth to a strong black haired lad, his cry as loud as his mother’s shout!”

Thom put his blade away, dusting his breeches off as he stood. Now the only question was whether the child would carry dragon blood or bear.

He supposed it mattered little at the moment. It would be years until he was old enough to change. As it was, there was much to do to bring in Valeer’s husband as part of their clan. There would be more wereblood soon enough. Thom may not have been born into it, but this clan, the Bear-Blade’s, had taken him in when his sister had wed into it. They treated him as an equal and never raised a hand to him. Unlike his own father had. 

There was honor here, even amongst beasts. 

In return, Thom would serve faithfully, just as past Bear-Blades had. And if he was lucky, he’d get to have a half-ling of his own. For now, he would enjoy the children his niece had brought into the family. Lost souls caught by another Bear-Blade.

* * *

“The child is indeed Ulfric’s,” Valera said. “Though I highly doubt you’re sterile, husband.”

“It doesn’t matter to me,” Galmar told her. “We are family regardless and I will love them all the same.”

“Do you think he carries bear blood?” Ulfric asked as he carefully seated himself on the other side of her.

“It would be funny if he did,” Valera said. “And the next, if he were blonde, to carry dragon blood.”

“Aye,” the men agreed with a chuckle. 

“The Grey Beard’s told me that the heat will be there for as long as I can bear children,” she told them. “It is best to prepare for my family to care for our children when that time comes.”

“Potion won’t help?” Ulfric asked.

“Nay,” she answered with a sad smile. “But since we have everything figured out with the children, publicly, it matters little. I will just have to keep an eye on the dates and not travel when it’s near.” She couldn’t help but worry that she could be pregnant during the war with the Thalmor, whenever that may be.

Visitor’s came and went, none getting too close to the newborn. Her husband’s remained at her side giving her support as she slept off and on. It had been a long labor, but that was to be expected with her first.

“What have you named him?” Galmar whispered, his chest pressed comfortably to her arm as Ulfric slept.

“I haven’t,” she answered.

“We should let Ulfric give his heir a name,” Galmar suggest, his lips barely grazing the top of her ear. It was unfair how easily aroused they could make her, even after giving birth. His rough chuckle told her he heard her.

“If we’re all in agreement, then aye,” she told him.

“How are you feeling?”

“With my King on one side, and my Sun on the other, how could I feel anything but wonderful?” She asked him before tipping her head back and accepting his passionate kiss.

In the years since she’d found the dusty journal in her darkened childhood home, she finally felt fulfilled. Her life had changed dramatically, forging a warrior out of a meek woman’s body. The Imperial’s had tasted her heartache and anger at being left behind by her parents. The despair and desperation at the thought of them dying inside enemy territory.

And now the Thalmor would have a taste of what she would do to protect all she had.

But this time… with her clan at her back, her husband leading the fight, and her King awaiting their victory.

The Thalmor would fall, of that she was sure. Skyrim would not fail her.


End file.
